Burner-positioning and mounting assembly for fuel burning appliances



May '11, 1965 F. E. IBATSON 3,182,707

BURNER-POSITIONING AND MOUNTING ASSEMBLY FOR FUEL BURNING APPLIANCESFiied June 1, 1962 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent IllinoisFiled June 1, 1962, Ser. No. 199,297 4 Claims. (Cl. 158-2) Thisinvention relates to a burner-positioning and mounting assembly for fuelburning appliances.

Fuel burning appliances, utilizing a fluid medium, such as gas, areprovided with a flue or combustion tube for directing the flame, from aburner, along a predetermined path. The burner and the flue arepositioned with respect to each other in the appliance to insure theflame does not impinge upon the wall of the flue to provide incompletecombustion and possible harmful carbon monoxide, particularly in such anappliance as a gas refrigerator having a self-contained flue unvented inthat the flue is not connected to a chimney leading to the atmosphereoutside of a building. Accordingly, it is important that the burner andflue be properly aligned and positioned in fuel burning appliances. Insuch appliances, the flue is fixed and the burner is usually detachablymounted for servicing and repair. Heretofore, the assembly, detachment,and reassembly of the burner relative to the appliance, has presentedtedious manufacturing and service problems.

An object of the invention is to provide an improved burner positioningand mounting assembly for a fuel burning appliance.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved burnerpositioning and mounting assembly for a fuel burning appliance andpermitting the burner to be readily and easily associated with anddetachable from the appliance.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved burnerpositioning and mounting assembly for a fuel burning appliance and inwhich the burner is accurately and simply positioned in the appliance ina manner insuring the correct alignment of the burner with the flue ofthe appliance during the assembly of the burner with the appliance inthe manufacturing and servicing process.

A specific object of the invention is to provide a burner positioningand mounting assembly for a fuel burning appliance characterized by theburner being slidably mounted on a guide plate cooperative with a guideand positioning member to insure the accurate vertical and lateraldisposition of the fuel burner relative to a flue of the appliance forproper alignment of the burner flame with the flue and to locate theburner flame substantially within the flue.

The invention together with the above and other objects and advantageswill be more clearly understood from the following description andaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gas refrigerator applianceillustrating the relative locations of the improved burner positioningand mounting assembly and a generator flue.

FIG. 2 is a greatly enlarged sectional view of the appliance includingthe improved burner positioning and mounting assembly in its operativerelation to the flue of the appliance, said section being taken on line2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2, but illustrating the assemblypartially inserted into the appliance;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view, showing the assembly partiallyinserted into the appliance; and

FIG. 5 is a top plan view, taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

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Referring to the drawings, the gas refrigerator appliance, shown in FIG.1 is designated by the reference character 10. A fuel burner device inthe form of a gas burner 11 is positioned in the bottom of the applianceand a vertical generator flue 12 is disposed above the burner. The fluesystem includes the generator flue 12, a dilution flue extending fromthe generator flue to the top of the refrigerator, and a generator fluebaffle which distributes heat in the generator flue. As this flue systemis conventional, no further description thereof will be made.

Referring to FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 5, the burner 11 is provided with aplurality of tubes, collectively identified at 14, for supplying gas tothe burner and to a pilot lighter associated with the burner, and alsocontrols generally indicated at 15 and including a pressure regulator,thermostat, and supply and shutoff valves, the burner, tubes, andcontrols being mounted on a carrier in the form of an enlongated plate16, and constituting therewith a unitary assembly. The plate 16 isprovided at opposite sides thereof with upwardly turned flanges 17 and18 and an end flange 19. In the position of this assembly shown in FIG.2, the gas burner mixing tube 20 is located in vertical alignment withthe flue 12 so that the gas and air mixture flows from the top openingsof the burner cap C to project the flame into the bottom of the flue.

The flue 12 is supported in the container or cabinet 21 of therefrigerator appliance by a horizontal Wall 22 extending between andconnected to a vertical spaced rear Wall 23 and an inner wall 24 of therefrigerator cabinet. The walls 23 and 24 merging with a bottom wall 25of the cabinet. The inner wall 24 is provided with an opening 26 and thefront wall 27 is also provided with an opening 28 permitting theinsertion and removal of the assembled burner components and mountingplate 16 relative to the flue 12.

The cabinet bottom Wall 25 is provided with parallel ribs 29, 3t), and31- spaced from each other between the front wall 27 to the rear wall 23of the cabinet. During insertion and removal of the assembled plate 16and the burner components, the plate 16 slidingly engages the ribs 30and 31 on the cabinet bottom wall.

Supported on and fixed to the rib 29 is a guide member or bracket 32having upwardly extending side flanges 33 and 34. As shown in FIG. 5,these flanges converge toward the cabinet rear wall 23 and also adjacentends of the flanges are outwardly turned, to guide the plate 16 betweenthe flanges 33 and 34, the flange 33 being used to guidingly engage theflange 17 of the plate 16 during movement of the plate toward the flueto position the cap C beneath the flue. To further assist this guidingmovement, the bracket 32 is provided with a downwardly turned flange 35engageable with the bottom of the plate 16. As the top surfaces of theribs 29, 30, and 31 of the cabinet bottom wall are substantially in acommon horizontal plane, and the flange 35 of bracket 32 extends belowthis plane, it will be apparent that the flange 35 will slidingly engagethe plate 16 to position the plate 16 on the bracket 32.

The burner may be enclosed by an air shutter member comprising twosemi-cylindrical parts 36 and 37 surrounding the burner tube and havingtheir lower ends enclosed by a collar 38 snugly engaging and holding theparts 36 and 37 together, the collar 38 having a flange fixed to theburner base by screws, as shown. The burner base is fixed to plate 16 bya screw S (FIG. 2).

Means are provided to accurately position the burner beneath the flue incorrect vertical alignment with the flue passage and also to raise theburner so that the flame is within the flue. Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5,the parts 36 and 37 have engaged side flanges 40 and 41 and the upperportion of the part 36 is formed to provide an inverted U-shaped guideand positioning frame having and positioned relative to the flue.

a horizontal top wall 43 and depending side walls 44, 44 merging withthe flanges 41, the top wall having an arcuate opening 45 centrallylocated with respect to the burner tube. As seen in FIGS. 4 and 5, aguide and positioning member or bracket 46 is connected to the cabinetwall 22. The bracket 46 is substantially U-shaped having a flat mountingportion 47 and downwardly depending spring portions or fingers 48, 48defining an arcuate opening 50 partially surrounding the flue tube. Thefingers 48, 48 are downwardly inclined toward the burner so that uponmovement of the plate 16 and burner toward the flue, the fingers willengage the top wall 43 of the guide frame of the air shutter member andcam the burner with the plate 16 upwardly to thereby raise the one endof plate 16 and thereby the burner to the position shown in FIG. 2. Eachof the fingers 48, 48 are formed to provide the inclined portions 48a,48a disposed at an angle to the horizontal top Wall 43 of the frame toengage the same and to elevate the burner device and carrier duringinward movement thereof, the fingers 48,

48 also having the generally horizontal portions 48b, 4812 which engagethe top Wall 43 of the frame and serves to dispose the burner in theposition shown in FIG. 2 with the burner cap C located to project theflame substantially within the flue. The portions 43b of the fingerscooperate with the cabinet wall 22 to clamp the wall 43 of the framebetween the fingers and the wall 43 so that the burner will be firmlyheld in position. It will be apparent the outer side edges of fingers48, 48 of bracket 46 cooperate with the side Walls 44, 44 of the burnerguide frame to simply and accurately position the burner and flue inproper relationship, While the pick-up fingers 43, 48 of bracket 46raise the plate 16 and thereby the burner with the burnerflame-projecting tip closely adjacent to the flue to insure the burnerflame is correctly centered Thus, the burner is located accurately bothvertically and laterally with re spect to the flue 12 and with theburner flame substantially within the flue.

What is claimed is:

1. In a fuel burning appliance having a container provided with avertical stationary flue, and a fuel burner device having a verticalmixing tube with an upper flameprojecting cap, the improvement residingin means for supporting said device in said container for generallyhorizontal movement; means for guiding said movement of said device toposition said tube beneath and in vertical alignment with said flue; andmeans for elevating said device, during horizontal movement of saiddevice, to

position said cap so that the flame is substantially within the lowerend of said flue, said elevating means including a member on said deviceand disposed in a horizontal plane above said tube thereof, and asupport secured to said container adjacent said flue and inclineddownwardly toward said device to engage and raise said member duringsaid movement of said device.

2. In a fuel burning appliance having a container provided with avertical stationary flue, and a fuel burner device having a verticalmixing tube with an upper flameprojecting cap, the improvement residingin means for supporting said device in said container for generallyhorizontal movement; means for guiding movement of said device on saidsupporting means to position said tube beneath and in vertical alignmentwith said flue; and means for elevating said burner device, duringhorizontal movement of said device, to position said cap so that theflame is substantially within the lower end of said flue, said elevatingmeans including a frame connected to said device and having a horizontalportion disposed above said cap thereof, and a support member connectedto said container and having fingers inclined downwardly toward saiddevice and engageable with the horizontal portion of said frame toengage and elevate said device during said movement of said device.

3. In a fuel burning appliance as defined in claim 2 wherein the framehorizontal portion is provided with an arcuate opening and the fingersdefine an arcuate opening with said flue projecting Within said arcuateopenings.

4. In a fuel burning appliance as defined in claim 2 wherein the frameincludes side walls merging at their upper ends with said horizontalportion of said frame and cooperating with the sides of said fingers tolocate said cap centrally of said flue.

References Cited by the Examiner- UNITED STATES PATENTS 405,291 6/89Zimmerling 1582 X 1,793,326 2/31 Knupifer 158-2 X 1,826,995 10/31 Davis158-2 X 2,247,859 7/41 -Purtell 158-2 2,777,510 1/57 Berger 158282,822,867 2/58 Sassmanhausen 1587 X 3,033,272 5/62 Stierlin 1584 JAMESW. WESTHAVER, Primary Examiner.

PERCY L. PATRICK, Examiner.

1. IN A FUEL BURNING APPLIANCE HAVING A CONTAINER PROVIDED WITH AVERTICAL STATIONARY FLUE, AND A FUEL BURNER DEVICE HAVING A VERTICALMIXING TUBE WITH AN UPPER FLAMEPROJECTING THE IMPROVEMENT RESIDING INMEANS FOR SUPPORTING SAID DEVICE IN SAID CONTAINER FOR GENERALLYHORIZONTAL MOMENT; MEANS FOR GUIDING SAID MOVEMENT OF SAID DEVICE TOPOSITION SAID TUBE BENEATH AND IN VERTICAL ALIGNMENT WITH SAID FLUE; ANDMEANS FOR ELEVATING SAID DEVICE, DURING HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT OF SAIDDEVICE, TO POSITION SAID CAP SO THAT THE FLAME IS SUBSTANTIALLY WITHINTHE LOWER END OF SAID FLUE, SAID ELEVATING MEANS INCLUDING A MEMBER ONSAID DEVICE AND DISPOSED IN A HORIZONTAL PLANE ABOVE SAID TUBE THEREOF,AND A SUPPORT SECURED TO SAID CONTAINER ADJACENT SAID FLUE AND INCLINEDDOWNWARDLY TOWARD SAID DEVICE TO ENGAGE AND RAISE SAID MEMBER DURINGSAID MOVEMENT OF SAID DEVICE.